The wildlife of the Bovey Valley has adapted to human influences for thousands of years, and today, there are many clues in the landscape showing where and how our ancestors have lived, side-by-side with nature for millennia. Remains of stone buildings from prehistoric and medieval times are scattered through the valley and recent studies have recorded where enclosures and boundaries defined different land uses. Further work by archaeologists continues to tell the story of human habitation in the Bovey which,Read more
Posts filed in: Management
Replenishing Resources – Carbon Capture in Action
On a misty spring-time Dartmoor morning, a group of employees and customers of Premier Paper Group got together for a company tree planting day in East Dartmoor National Nature Reserve. As a paper manufacturer and supplier, Premier Paper is aware of its corporate responsibility for the resources they use and is working with the Woodland Trust on a ‘Carbon Capture’ scheme. The regional manager of Premier Paper explained how the paper industry uses a proportion of recycled material when possibleRead more
Students Spring into Action
Just six weeks on from their last visit, the students of the University of Exeter were back in the woods to continue their conservation task at the East Dartmoor National Nature Reserve. In that short time the seasons had changed and, on a cool morning, some spring time wildlife was waiting to welcome the students. Their aims for the day were to clear undergrowth around some of the archaeological features in the valley; two ancient farmsteads are being gradually revealedRead more
Sun, Trees, Tools and Tall Tales
You can’t organise the sun, but if we could, we couldn’t have planned it any better. On the 25th March we had the sun, we had warmth and we had lots of people having fun and learning about how and why we manage our woods (in the past and in the present). Down in the glade – where the sun kept everyone warm – there was a lovely relaxed atmosphere whilst people ate their picnics and took part in variousRead more
Hard Work, Soft Hearts: Timber in the Bovey Valley
The sweet smell of freshly cut western red cedar timber rises above the distant roar of chainsaws and rumble of tractors. For the last time this winter season, the team of woodland contractors have been at work in Houndtor Woods, deep in the Bovey Valley. Before spring picks up pace, this final felling job is being brought to a close, opening up the shadiest part of the conifer plantation to bring in the sun and revive the depleted wildflowers downRead more
Bovey Valley Timber: Your Questions Answered
Why are trees felled in the woods of the Bovey Valley? How are they felled and how is the timber extracted? Where does the timber go after it leaves the Bovey Valley? Timber! Tools, Trees and Tall Tales is a special spring-time event hosted by the Woodland Trust and Natural England, as part of the wider HLF funded Moor than meets the eye project, where you will be able to find out the answers to these questions … and lotsRead more
Take Shelter in Yarner Wood
For the wildlife of Dartmoor, Yarner Woods provides essential shelter from the extremes of the moorland weather, the swirling wind, thunderous storms and even the occasional blazing sun. The grand oaks of this nature reserve withstand the regular pressures thrown at them from the Atlantic weather systems and maintain a calm and safe hideout for the wild residents. But for those sensitive creatures that need a little more protection, a new wooden shelter has just been built among the oakRead more
Firewood for Good Gleaning
Across Dartmoor, there are visual signs of ancient boundaries where land owners once marked their land and, even today, the maps of the moor show the commons where people could graze their livestock in a regulated way. As times have changed, these rights have evolved and become more suited to our times. There were once areas where local people had the right to allow their pigs to eat acorns or beech mast but these practices are no longer relevant toRead more
Look Out! Bird Hide Under Construction
Managing a nature reserve is about creating a diverse range of habitats to support the widest variety of wild species. Establishing and maintaining the right mix of wild plants in the right places will, it is hoped, attract the wildlife to the reserve and, assuming it is not disturbed, it will settle in and make a home. Of course, the appropriate species of wild plants and animals must be targeted; only those that are indigenous to the area are expectedRead more
Vinnimore Medieval Farmstead – International Rescue
Day 1 Managing a nature reserve can be a complex job, requiring a good understanding of many ecological disciplines, but here at East Dartmoor NNR, a good knowledge of historical land use and local heritage helps too. To develop these competencies, the Natural England Eco Skills Conservation Assistants are, from time to time, given a project to manage. This time it was the turn of Elizabeth “Beany” Townsend to get a taste for planning and organising preparations for the archaeologicalRead more
